Soldier
by Shrimp Chip
Summary: Because Kanda was always meant to be gender bent. Pretty much AU, Girl!Kanda,
1. All I Really Want

Seriously, I don't know what I was thinking. Probably about gender-bending. Because, you know, I enjoy turning poor souls into the opposite gender. It entertains me. So, I guess, I was thinking about the characters that would be sinfully funny to gender bend. As you may tell, Kanda's name passed my mind. There was a moment of silence. Another moment. And another. And then I could _not_ hold in the hilarity of the thought, and I laughed out loud. And then, I thought about how damn _awesome_ it would be to write. And . . . And . . . Well, this came up. For real, I don't know if I should even continue this. It's . . . I . . . Well I kind of feel _bad_.

Yes. I know Kanda is a part of some Japanese ladies imagination. But . . . _He would be so angry at me!!!_

Gah, I'm sorry Kanda! Don't magically slap me, or something!

* * *

Meditating was something she had always done. She was taught to do it when she was young—and she found it useful. With the brunt of the war directing her and the others, stress was a definite problem. Some people drew, some people played sports, and some people read to take their mind away. Kanda meditated.

She wasn't in her exorcist uniform at that time. She'd just gotten back from a mission, and wasn't due for another one for a day or three. She didn't remember. Not like it really mattered if she remembered. They would tell her when she was leaving…

All that mattered now was nothing. Don't focus. Don't think. Just feel.

"Kanda-chan?"

Lenalee. Kanda's teeth ground together, before she decided to just ignore the girl.

"Kanda-chan? I need to talk to you."

Kanda is _meditating_. Kanda is _ignoring_you. Kanda does not _hear_ you.

"Kanda-chan! Don't make me hit you over the head with something!" the girl practically shouted, before puffing her cheeks in annoyance.

Kanda sighed internally, before slowly turning her attention to Lenalee, eyes narrowed, a frown clearly printed on her face. The expression said it all. "What?" she asked dully, propping her chin on her fist.

Lenalee smiled, satisfied. "Good! I thought I'd have to kick you." Kanda rolled her eyes, and the only response was a laugh. With a smile, Lenalee explained why she'd come and interrupted Kanda for what seemed to be, and probably was, a shitty reason. "You've been in here all day, Kanda! Let's go eat dinner together, okay?"

Her grin was angelic. How could someone possibly refuse the cuteness that was Lenalee?

"_No_."

Kanda is meditating. She _will_ ignore you. She _will_ pretend she doesn't hear you.

Lenalee huffed, before angrily turning on her heels, and briskly walking away. She knew a lost cause when she saw one. But that didn't mean she would refrain from muttering complaints the whole way. But that was okay. Because Kanda didn't hear her.

--

Half an hour later, Kanda was eating a late dinner, because she was a moron who got hungry. Slowly shoveling loads of Soba into her mouth, she contemplated asking for more sauce. Why? Because she _liked_Soba with a lot of sauce. And if you like something, then you eat it. You don't need a reason.

It was a bit more difficult to eat today though—She'd taken on some serious hits on her last mission, and even though it'd been a day or so since she'd actually been wounded, the thing still stung every time she moved her right arm. Healed—but still sore. It felt like an electric pang running down her side. Painful. Unhelpful. Because of this she'd resorted to eating her food with her left hand… which was a bit messier, and clumsier. But not by much. She was practically ambidextrous.

So far, it was a day just like any other. Nothing interesting happened so far, and frankly, in her own (probably biased) opinion, nothing to terribly special was happening later anyways. Important? Probably. Could she live without it? _Yes_. _The damn annoying brat._

After she'd finished, she stood up instantly, causing a clang of sliver wear. Anyone within a 10 meter radius (which was few) jolted with surprise, eyeing her wearily. With an ever so dull expression, she pulled her arms into the sleeves of her coat, not even bothering to zip it up, despite the fact that all that was underneath was a thick layer of bandages that shamelessly revealed most of her torso. Did she care about this? Obviously. She wasn't even wearing the coat earlier.

The bowl was still on the table. She contemplated leaving it for someone else to clean up. A sideways glance to the nearest man almost caused the poor thing a heart attack. She snorted, and rolled her eyes. It seemed like too much trouble. And besides, it was possible no one would get it. And where would she be then? Kitchen duty with Jerry… She suppressed a shiver, and quickly took hold of the bowl, holding it palms up like a waitress carrying a platter.

After dumping the leftover juices, and after stacking the bowl neatly into the mound of dirty dishes (all the while with the same half glare, half emotionless stare), she deduced that her job was done, and she could go to sleep or something. If all went to plan, she could be knocked out within the hour.

Halfway to her room, she realized that this dream would not be fulfilled.

"_INTRUDER ALERT!" _the intercom wailed. One of Kanda's hands instantly shot up to the most affected ear. It was automatic what she was supposed to do now. She and Lenalee were the only exorcists in the building, and it wasn't like Komui was going to send his precious little sibling out there (The stupid sister complex). Besides… She was closest to an exit anyways, right? If a window counted as an exit that is…

"Tch, like it matters." She muttered. That window never had a chance (**AN: How else could he have possibly got there so quickly!?**). With a swift kick, glass shattered outwards like an obviously sharper-than-normal hailstorm. She swung her leg over, and one jagged, ice-cold shard raked against the bottom of her thigh, a line of blood tracing its way up her skin. A drop of red splattered onto the window-frame, and that was it.

And she was out of there.

Her sword was drawn, the weapon doubling as a balance keeper as she skidded down short distance, and tile scraper, the clang of roofing breaking off from its former home following in her wake. She landed with an acrobats pose. She got up from her kneeling position, so as to get a better look at whatever the hell she was going to gut that night. Her eyes scanned the ground from her vantage point. Nothing, nothing, plant, plant, old man, plant, dirt—ah, it was probably the old man. O rather, whatever was posing as an old man.

Her eye narrowed. Whatever it was, it was going to be dead in a few seconds. Their gazes locked, blue meeting gray. A smirk twitched onto her face.

"Are you really stupid enough to come here alone?" a cold voice muttered, the emotions in her tone ranging from disbelief, to amusement, and to undoubtedly the most dominant of them all, _annoyance_.

Time to close the distance. Kanda leaped off the roof, barely registering the old man's protests of innocence. Her eye internally rolled. Human? Yeah. _Right_. The white hair of head was blocked by a gigantically ugly red arm. Using the momentum of her fall, Kanda's sword cut a clean line right down the appendage. It was the sound of ripping fabric, and scratching steel. That was her first clue that something was different.

She seriously thought that was all it would take before he shriveled into a pile of dust, or matter, or whatever they called it these days. But apparently old man had a stubborn streak. He jumped back from her slash, skidding back a few centimeters, before stopping to a halt. Kanda's eyes flicked upwards, and surprise was clearly written on her face.

Now that she got a good look at the old man, it turned out he wasn't so old after all. Just a stupid little brat with a mop of ugly white hair. She frowned at his small grunt of pain, before setting herself upright, placing the flat edge of Mugen on her palm as she looked him over. What the hell was going on? He should be gone by now… But he was just staring at his stupid hand with disbelief, as if he'd never seen wound on it before. What was with that arm…? It didn't look like an akuma weapon. It seriously resembled some kind of innocence.

"You. What's with that arm?" she asked in a non-friendly manner, glaring at it as if it were some kind of disease she could catch at any second.

The brat frowned, and looked at her with a serious expression, "This is an anti-akuma weapon." He stated, saying each word clearly, "I am an exorcist."

Kanda's frown deepened. "Are you serious?" she mumbled, irritated, before snapping her attention to the entrance, "Damn it, Gate Keeper!" she shouted very, very angrily, reminding the world why her nickname within the order wasn't Demon Queen for nothing.

The stupid door babbled a bunch of nonsense, which Kanda barely listened to, and then the old-man-boy-brat screamed some other stuff at him, in which Kanda also barely listened to, and by the time the door rolled out some more words, she wasn't listening at all. This was seriously _pissing_ her off. She wanted some straight answers, and she wanted them now. No, she didn't care about answers. She just wanted to sleep… The flat of her sword tapped against her palm, sliding against her hand, before her finger arched upwards, balancing the steel on the tips of her nails.

"Hmph." They both automatically turned their attention towards her, even though she barely made an audible noise. She looked up from her weapon, eyes boring into her target, "I guess there's only one way to find out what you're made of." She hissed.

With a swift motion, she was back in attacking mode. "Stand still, brat." She commanded, before rushing in for the kill.

"Wait, really, wait!" he screamed, holding his hand in front of him, "I'm not your enemy! You should have gotten the letter of recommendation from Cross!"

Cross? She halted; the tip of her sword was close enough to slice off his bangs. Kanda blinked, "Recommendation?" she stated, "From the General?"

Wasn't he supposed to be dead? Not like she really cared. He'd always been a pain in the ass…

"Y-Yes! A-A-A Letter." He answered shakily, not able to look at much else but the deadly point, not even a fingers width away from his head. He was a lucky, lucky bastard. "A-Addressed to a person named, K-Komui!"

If he knew who Komui was, this kid-old-man could be for real. But if it was a letter to Komui—god, they could be out here all night. She grimaced, and narrowed her eyes, not even bothering to say anything. She would find out if she was allowed to skewer him in the head within a few minutes, at the least. So, with that, she waited.

Not too long after that thought (better time then she had expected, at least), a familiar, if not annoying voice came on over the intercom. "Kanda!" a panicked voice called, "Halt your attack!"

Was it going to be that easy…? Yeah. Like she was going to do _that now_. Her sword might have lowered a few centimeters (it was now resting nicely at the base of his neck) but that just meant that she'd get to slit his throat.

"Open the gate!" a voice announced, "We allow you to pass, Allen Walker!"

Her eyes narrowed. What the hell was going on? Were they letting him off that easily? What other proof then a damn letter did they have? For all they knew, he could just be some monster in disguise. But then a flash of gold caught her attention, and her eyes focused on a more majestic looking golem then the usual brand. That thing followed Cross around. She almost sighed. If it was good enough proof for them, it would have to be good enough for her. At least for now. If she found something that was off in the slightest, the kid would wake up with a blood soaked pillow.

She sheathed Mugen with practiced speed and accuracy. She frowned (it was almost a pout), and lifted her chin. "You got lucky this time, brat." She spat, earning a glare from the now present Lenalee, who was striding towards them with a clipboard in hand.

"Kanda-chan," she scolded, "You should be nicer sometimes."

Kanda snorted, taking a step towards the Order, or in her opinion, a step towards _sleep_. But she was stopped by an annoyingly pubescent voice. "Ah, Miss Kanda!" the kid said loud enough to cover the distance between them. She didn't bother to look back. She was going to bed. She didn't want to converse with an annoying shortie. Hell, she'd probably never want to converse with him. "Kanda was your name, correct?" he called out again, closer then the last time.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Kanda turned her head to look at him. No words needed. An icy glare was all she felt he deserved for coming in-between her and a good night's rest. He smiled, and her insides squirmed with new found hatred for the twerp. "It's a pleasure to meet you." He greeted, acting as if she wasn't about to stab him a few seconds ago. His hand was held out, and all she did was stare.

He waited for a moment, his hand still in the air. It was like she was _obligated_ to say something. The kid was asking for an insult. Her lip twitched with annoyance, "Like I'd touch your ugly hand." She growled, before turning back to her original course. Within a few minutes, she had collapsed on her bed.

Nothing like a bitch without shut-eye.

* * *

I'm cowering in the corner, waiting for tons of hate reviews.

Please don't hurt me. It was the voices that made me do it


	2. Heads Will Roll

Why am I still writing this? Why, why, why? I mean really, just because I'm a fool for gender bending, doesn't mean I should continue, right? I mean, this is stupid, huh? I'm wasting my talents (?) on an idiotic idea. I should, eh, work on something else! . . . Oh, who am I kidding. Me and you both know I'm getting a BIG kick out of this. For seerz, man. This is uber fantastical. I mean, female Kanda is / would be so hot. No, no, no. She is / would be HAWT. With an a and a w, no less!

Let me get this straight before I continue this. I. Don't. Really. Like. Yullen. Yes, I will read it from time to time, but hell, its not my style. So this probably won't turn on that pairing, if it has any pairing at all. I'm reaaaal sorry. I have weird taste in loveloveromance ships. You know what I think is cool, you guys? Kanda x Tyki. Yeah baby, I'm an odd one. Just warning you, I do think thats a - okay. (WOULDN'T THAT BE SUPER HOT THOUGHT? I MEAN, FOR SEERZ?) Anyways, read on, you fools!

* * *

Even if she did get to her bed before midnight, her mind wasn't put to rest for a long while after that. Finally, after an hour of restless tossing and turning, she sat up, back against the wall, blankets forcefully pushed off of her legs. Her head lolled to one shoulder, and her teeth bit her bottom lip forcefully. Her eyes squeezed shut, as if the more force she used, the likelier the chances she would pass out.

No such luck.

Kanda groaned, and swung her legs over the side of the bed, shivering as her feet touched the chilled ground. She was too excited from the earlier events. She needed to punch something. Snatching her robe from the hook on the wall, she slid one arm into the sleeve, before realizing it wasn't the best choice of clothing.

In fact, why would she even need a coat? She flung it onto her bed, and instead reached into her drawers for a pair of pants (because she wasn't going to walk around in a tattered shirt), and grabbed her boots from under the bed.

Within the minute, her door was flung wide open. The only sound she could hear was Mugen slapping against her thigh, and her heels clacking against the stone floor. Walking down a flight of stairs, Kanda shoveled all of her hair to one shoulder, before digging through her pants for a hair tie. She rolled her eyes when her hands came up empty, and resolved to buy some new ones before the week ended.

The gate was in sight. The small feeling of excitement caused her to frown. She needed something more—challenging. Kanda hoped that mission would come sooner than later.

--

"Yeah. We all miss him too, you know?"

"Remember that one time? When we were in that bar, and he told that girl—" the man that sat beside her looked down into his bowl of soup with an opaque expression. The slightly larger one patted him on the shoulder comfortingly, "Yeah, he was a real riot." He said sadly, before shooting off into another story about the nameless dead finder. Another one.

Kanda was absolutely sick of these stories. The man was already gone. He was not the first, and he would not the last.

The more they spoke, the more familiar the person became. She didn't care if they mourned him—but that didn't mean she had to as well. Squeezing her chopsticks with a deadly grip, Kanda stared at her white knuckles with a slowly dimming expression. She'd had enough. They could talk about the dead man later.

"Stop talking about him." She hadn't even seemed to direct the words at the group, but they instantly knew who she was talking too. Her gaze flickered from the bowl to their slightly shocked faces. "He's _dead_."

The larger man blanched, before his expression turned to a blooming red rage. "Say that again, you bitch?" he shouted, rising from his seat with his arms flexed. As if he could intimidate her.

Kanda's eyes narrowed. With each word painfully accentuated, she gave him what he asked for. "_Stop talking about him. He's dead._"

His eyes showed the comprehension of a severely angered animal. Kanda looked at him monotonously. "Damn it," he whispered hoarsely, "We Finders risk our lives for you, and you have the nerve to be like this!?" his voice rose with each word, and she knew he wouldn't be able to hold back his anger much longer.

"Finders are easily replaceable. One day, you will be gone too." She frowned, "Why should even one of you matter to me?"

He snapped. She'd expected it. "You bitch!" he shouted, arm rearing back. His fist didn't hit her jaw. It didn't even hit the hand she was planning to use block his punch with.

His wrist was caught in the brat's hand, the kid looking into the angry man's eyes with a serious expression. "Please control your anger."

Did he just . . . ? The corner of her eye twitched. Did that idiot _dare_ interrupt in her business? As if she couldn't take care of it herself? As if she needed his help? Oh, she was not happy. Before the man could reply, a very forceful, very scary voice penetrated the silence of the cafeteria.

"Who the _hell_ do you think you are?"

The brat looked at her, and then to the man. As if wondering who just said that to him. But then he realized, no matter how high pitched the man (not that he would need to be that high pitched to mimic her), no one could imitate the feminine tone of a real woman. And besides that fact, Kanda looked pleasantly pissed off, which was a great tip off.

He blinked. "Um, excuse me?"

"You heard me, you little twerp." she hissed, ramming the full force of the hatred she felt for him that moment into a very, very intense glare. "What gives you the right to interrupt into my business?" Kanda said, folding her arms with frustration.

He gulped, still confused, "I was just trying to help you."

Her head tilted, "Who said I needed help?"

The brat dropped the now forgotten Finder's arm, and said in a tone of disbelieving, "He was about to punch you."

Kanda rolled her eyes, "Who said I didn't deserve to be punched?"

The kid paused. He'd obviously heard the conversation, and knowing his type, he probably thought she _did_ deserve it. He thought for a moment, about to say something, before he shut his mouth tight.

Kanda smirked, "Hm. What I thought..."

The brat looked at her with a look of reluctance. She was ready to leave, but he looked as if he had one or two words he needed to pump out of his system. She waited.

"Kanda! Allen! Over here!"

She glanced towards the entrance, and spotted Reever (Followed by Lenalee, who waved, if it matters), smiling towards them enthusiastically. She sighed, running a hand through her hair. Finally, a mission. Far away from the damn order, and this stupid kid.

"Eat your food in ten minutes, and come to the command post!" he hollered, "You two got a mission!"

You two? Maybe that could be used in a different way. Maybe they had separate missions, and they were getting them at the same time1. Because there was no way in hell she was going to be with him for more than a few seconds.

She was going on a mission, and she was going on it alone. Of course.

--

Stepping over strewn papers and books, Kanda half wondered how deep down the floor was. Was it a thin coating? Or would you have to dig? Not that it really mattered. Kanda frowned, and kicked up a few loose –as in not pounded into the ground—papers. He needed to clean up this shit. Bad.

Reever walked over to a currently sleeping Komui (Dumbass...), and started to whisper in his ear. She scowled. What the hell was he going to do to wake him up? Knowing Reever…

"Lenalee!" Komui shrieked, slipping on ten or so papers in the process of shooting up from his sleeping position, and falling onto the table. "Lenalee! How could you get married without telling your loving brother!" he cried, tears soaking into the paperwork he was laying on top of.

Kanda was mildly disturbed, lips curling into an unmistakable grimace.

A few seconds later, she was shown to the couch by an understandably embarrassed Lenalee. She smiled apologetically, and offered her a cup of coffee. Kanda shook her head, before settling into the couch, and making herself comfortable. She was keeping positive (if that was possible). Just because they were being shown their missions at the same time, in the same room, and by the same person, did not mean they were going on it together. That little twerp was not going to go with her. _Ever_.

Komui had now controlled himself, and began to explain what was going on. "All right, we don't have much time, so after you hear the summary, move out as quickly as possible" Kanda nodded. Sounded good to her. "If you want more detailed information, just read this packet on the way to your destination." Lenalee handed one to her with a small smile, and another to albino boy. Same packet too? Tch. That didn't mean anything.

Komui paused, before looking at them with a neutral expression, "Oh yes. You two will be going as partners."

Oh, god... She cast the brat a sideways glance, before folding her arms and decidedly looked away from him, as if the very sight of him disgusted her. Which it did. He looked thoroughly offended, before looking off in his own direction with a huff.

Komui raised an eyebrow. "Err, you two don't like each other already?"

--

If this kid asked _one more_ _fucking_ question, they were going to _miss_ the _fucking_ train.

"But wait, I just have _one more_ question." He said nonchalantly, as if they weren't leaping over a higher-than-one-story-building, and preparing to jump onto down to a possible death. Landing with their feet planted on a bridge, Brat caught sight of the lump of metal screeching its way down the tracks. She couldn't see him, but she knew his eyes boggled, "We're jumping on that!?" he shouted, confusion heavy in his tone.

"Just shut up for now!" Kanda hissed, not even half a second before she leaped to the potentially dangerous hazard bellow. She landed flat footed, a pang circling its way up her ankles, and up to her spinal cord. She winced, before falling backwards onto her behind. Where was that damn opening?

"Over here!" the finder yelled, his voice almost completely drowned out by the whistling wind. Kanda moved her head to look at him, but all she could pay attention to was black hair whacking her in the face. She cursed, before bunching the ponytail in her hands, and crawling towards the hatch. She pushed herself to the edge, before letting gravity do its job, landing with a surprisingly necessary flourish. She was soon followed by the white haired shortie.

While the finder said la di da2 to the train attendant, Kanda was trying her best to fix her currently wind-ragged hair. Combing her fingers through the obviously well taken care of strands, she blatantly ignored everyone who was staring at them with confused looks. Once satisfied, she took the hair tie from between her teeth, and knotted it tightly.

She focused her attention back on the finder and attendant. "Black Priests?" the attendant said with awe, staring directly at the rose crest stitched into her jacket3, and then to her and her companions profiles. He bent down in a hurried and shaky bow, "Yes sir! Please follow me!"

--

Lounging in the first class compartment, with a book hanging between her fingers, Kanda was expecting –hoping—for a quiet ride. But luck was a cruel mistress. "I hope you don't mind me asking, but about that question I had earlier…" Kanda internally sighed. Yes. She _did_ mind him asking. He looked at his papers, before fixing her with that same serious stare that he gave her when he was, well, serious. "What does this eerie legend have to do with innocence?"

Kanda scowled. "Tch…"

She really didn't want to answer. I mean, couldn't he see she was reading? God damn, this brat talked too much. And did he seriously not know? Kanda rolled her eyes.

"Don't you know already?" she stated blandly, glaring at him with a look of impatient annoyance.

He frowned, "I apologize, but I don't know at all."

Her frown deepened, "Figures." The kid attempted not to look offended.

She leaned on the windows ledge, looking out it with little to no interest. "Innocence is a kind of substance that's changed from the time of Noah, to the present." She explained voice completely uninspiring, "In the beginning it was rotting away at the bottom of the sea, but—like it was luring us to it, we discovered it. Its appearance changes every time we find it, so it could appear as anything, at any moment. They're always showing up as some eerie illusion, for some reason." Her gaze flickered towards him, half wondering if he found this boring. His eyes gleamed with understanding. "So that means that the Ghost of Martel might have something to do with innocence?" he inputted, cocking his head to the side.

She nodded, "Mm."

"In an eerie place you'll find innocence." She quoted, sounding sarcastically ominous. "That's why the church searches places like this. Whenever they think something's more than likely there, they send us in."

Her speech faded into silence, Kanda giving more than her fair share of words in less than five minutes. Her attention was once again focused on the papers in front of her, though her mind was wandering somewhere else. How did the little brat not know about something as basic as that? Was that damned Cross that bad of a mentor? that he wouldn't even know the basics of innocence? Sadly, she didn't think twice about that theory. He'd always been her least favorite general, if she had a favorite at all. He'd always been a prick.

"_That's right_."

The words vibrated throughout the compartment. The abruptness of it gave those two words an almost hypnotic presence. Kanda zoned in on the door. The finder had something to say apparently. His voice carried through the barrier of the door. "I too was a part of the investigation, so I have seen it before." Kanda assumed it was the innocence he was speaking of. Was what he had to say something important? Her lips pursed in concentration.

"The Ghost of Martel is a doll."

Doll…?

* * *

Oh, you all know Allen is a gentleman. I don't diss him for it. But, you know, girly!Kanda does. Because, well, you know he / she would. Sorry for any OOCness (if any) you find sad, or revolting in here. I didn't mean it. Also, I'd like to know something. What is Kanda's name . . . as a girl? I mean, I know Yuu is super fun, yo. But, for seerz, does that seem like a girl name to you? What would her name be? Yuu-a? Yuu-a-rina? I need some input if I'm going to play along with this.

And last but not least, I AM SO SORRY FOR ALL THIS RAMBLING DETAILS. I do it. I do. And I don't mean to. And you know what sucks even worse? My details are _stupid_. For seerz, I would say "Blue-y circular-y bowl" if it came to mind. So yeah. Review. And stuff. So, I, like, you know, **_know_**.

And I only read this over once, so mistakes a - go - go.


	3. Gravity

Below her was a craggy cliff. Who knew how tall it was, or how long it would take to fall to the bottom. Down there (Far, far down it seemed) was the sprawled mess of a crumbly city. The moon caused the houses and buildings to glow with an almost silver color—thought it was tinged with the sepia and whatever other colors they really were. Kanda frowned, tilting back her head automatically, naturally.

A cold tingle rolled down her spine, and she suppressed the urge to dance from foot to foot. Besides the normal sense of incomprehensible forebode that came with shifty, abandoned, and probably akuma ridden cities, there was the simple fact of _knowing_ that made her anxious to get down there.

Kanda dully stared into the untraceable city streets below. "We didn't get here fast enough. The finders are already dead." She said calmly, before turning her attention to the white haired brat she had been stuck with. "Kid," she started, grabbing his attention. "Let me make this clear. I don't care if you're about to be stabbed in the heart, if you're a burden to the mission, I won't think twice about leaving you behind." She looked him straight in the eyes, making sure he understood she wasn't threatening him with empty remarks. "In war, there are always sacrifices. Don't think of me as your partner."

The brat took in the words, before his expression hardened. "I don't think I like your way of thinking."

She was going to ignore him, before the sound of an explosion stole both of their attention. Her focus darted to the pale yellow tail of fire lighting up the night. Kanda's eyes narrowed. That was a sure sign of akuma activity if there ever was any. It was time to get down from this damn cliff and think of a strategy.

The finder, herself, and white haired moron scrambled down its face. Within five or ten minutes, they were nearly at the bottom, and countless blasts had occurred. Each time she heard one of the thunderous roars, Kanda's mind would pick up speed, sorting through possible plans and strategies. As if the noise reminded her she needed to act fast if she was going to obtain the innocence.

The brat jumped down the last few feet, before snapping back into action. Before she and the finder had even reached the ground, he had started running towards the destination, boots clacking on the old, unused cobblestone streets, his partners now hot on his heels.

Kanda glared at his back, clearly in disapproval of him being in front of her. Who did he think he was? Better than her? Her superior? She almost yelled at him to get behind her—obviously she was the one who knew what the hell they were doing. But she decided against it. It would be his own fault if he tripped up and died on his first mission. And if he survived through the night, he would have a very vivid lesson to look back on every time he managed to scrape up a job for himself.

Fifty meters or so before the danger zone, Kanda skidded to a very audible halt. The finder stopped a ways behind her, yet the idiot kept moving towards the destination. She frowned, watching him for a ways, before sprinting to the right, taking a completely different course. It was his own fault; whether he wasn't paying attention, or he wasn't listening.

She ran past another corner, before kicking the door of an old home apart. The dry, cracky wood came apart with the first impact. Making her way past the parlor, she quickly located the way to the top—up the twisted spiral staircase. Jumping the last step, Kanda made her way to the roof of the building, wondering if what she was hearing was correct, and if she'd be willing to clean up the mess.

She was right, and she sure as hell was not willing.

Below her was the perfect view of her next battleground. Not only that, but she was at a great advantage—able to play on the element of surprise, and height. But of course, a damnable idiot had already trampled on her plan (Which was almost her fault for not yelling at him to get behind her. _Almost_.) She had made it just in time to see the after effects of (What she assumed was) him incautiously ramming his innocence into an akuma.

Just like that.

The damnable bastard. What an _idiot_.

Perched on the edge of the roof, she ground her heel into the sand stone edge, reveling in the feeling of cracking stone. She grimaced, nails biting into her palm. "Dumbass." She mumbled under her breath, witnessing the event with a look of undeniable irritation.

* * *

'ho damn that was short. BUT I WOULD HAVE NEVER FINISHED IT IF I KEPT GOING.

Gimme another month. I'll give you a long one, lawl.


End file.
